A little more progress on a new Moai mug. Instead of starting w/ a circular form, I went a la the Mad Dog Mike (and other potters') method of subtractive work from a chunk of clay. I had trimmed a bit away, but wasn't quite happy w/ its current look:

Not Moai-y enough, so I added clay to improve the features. The top will have a rim/ brim. While I had no intention of it looking like Bamboo Ben's mug from Tiki Farm, it's somewhat similar- maybe it's just its chin. More work will certainly differentiate it. So far:

It will dry out a bit more, then will carve out its ears and more. Next up will be cutting the solid mass in half and hollowing it out, then reattaching it.

Still waiting for the two "Latte Log" Tiki Mugs to be bisque fired- hopefully this week. Here they are, waiting...

Thanks! Been away from the studio for a bit, so got back today and started digging away... but first I had to slice the Moai in half...

Then I dug out the guts, until both halves were empty. I think that's what the inside of MY head looks like...

Then I scored and slipped the two halves back together. I didn't trim the top to ensure that it fit together well....

After it set for a little bit, I took a tool and trimmed off the top of the mug.

Next up I wrapped it up in plastic to set up for a bit. I won't touch this until some time next week.

I work at a communal clay studio in San Diego, alongside some very talented potters- not all are into tiki- though the owner of the studio likes working in all styles. Though not a TC member (yet), I wanted to introduce you to L.E. Tiki (her name is Elly)- I'm not sure if there's another LE Tiki on TC- if so, she (and I) apologize.

She threw a bird feeder as one piece of clay on the wheel, then started tinkering with it. I'm pretty interested in buying this piece from her, but thought everyone here might want to check it out- or order one for yourself.

First she textured the palapa with a rake tool:

Then added some holes for the bird seed to pour out. She then added some bamboo framing around each "doorway"

L.E. Tiki is really into details- the bamboo ends are hollowed out and look very realistic.

Higher angle view:

She then added a (very) long bamboo border along the rim of the lower bowl/ seed holder.

I'll try to post some more photos of her work as her Tiki Bird Feeder progresses, and will pass along any comments/ questions/ requests to her as well!

The Latte Log mugs made it out of the kiln.They'll be given away this weekend to two customers who were the first to complete a challenge in drinking 41 coffee drinks off our Coffee Truck menu. Inspired by the Grog Log at the Tonga Hut, they had a year to finish the task. These customers rushed through it to make it to the end first (in four months)- the first place finisher had 9 drinks in one weekend- plus a few more shots of espresso after the completion. In any case, stoked to give these away to folks this weekend. Enough story, here's what they look like: (I made two):

Knotty:

The Coffee Truck on the mug:

Interior:

Mug 2: a bit taller, w/ different design.

I double dipped the mug into the glaze, thinking I would get some kind of "coffee spilling" look. It came out interesting, though not perfect. The glaze gets very glossy when thicker, wasn't expecting such a different look to it.

Sides:

Interior:

The mini-Paco Coconut came out of the kiln as well. This was a hand thrown piece w/ the silhouette of my wife's 14 year chihuahua. He's missing part of one of his ears due to a scrap w/ our other dog over an empty jar of peanut butter. I took the blame, but it really wasn't my fault. It's almost too small to drink out of, so it'll be Paco's honorary mug at the home bar.

It spells out "Paco"...

Interior has same glaze as exterior on top of white porcelain slip. Cool effect:

A little further progress on the Moai Dug-out mug. Cut harder edges and added more details:

Thanks, Wendy! Hoping the customers enjoy the mugs- they worked hard for them.

I dug out another mug cut in half yesterday- learning as I go. I'm sure Mike has advice for me (should have asked him first)! The new one is a "Quad Bob" mug- w/ a Tiki Bob on each side. I'm going to work on a few hand-built Bobs next. Thanks for the support. Reading your thread keeps me excited on moving forward w/ designs. Hope to see you at an event soon.

The Latte Loggers picked up their mugs this weekend. Originally the (one) winner was going to receive a mug AND a track jacket, but with the tie I made t-shirts for each- as well as a small wooden box to store the mugs. I cut down some pieces of pallet wood, burned them and shot them together. Pretty simple but did the trick. Here are a few pics of the mugs, boxes, and the winners (since Wendy requested these pics).

Top view, interior of Mug 1/2:

Todd, one of the winners- who has been a collector of tiki mugs in the past. He said this mug has rekindled his interest....

Jessica, who would have come in first place, though Todd snaked her at the last second by drinking 8 (or 9?) coffee drinks in one weekend: